The Shenandoah Raiders will take on the Northeastern Knights in a holiday battle at at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are still undefeated after five-games, but that won't be the case come Friday.
Last Friday, Shenandoah beat Tri 62-49.
| 12/13/24 vs Tri | 9 |
| 12/07/24 @ Cowan | 1 |
| 12/06/24 vs Eastbrook | 0 |
| 11/30/24 @ Blue River Valley | 2 |
| 11/27/24 vs Daleville | 1 |
Shenandoah's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Garrett May, who almost dropped a double-double on 15 points and nine blocks. With that strong performance, May is now averaging an impressive 2.6 blocks per game. Another player making a difference was Cannon Case, who went 6 of 7 en route to 14 points and seven rebounds.
Shenandoah smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in five consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Northeastern won against South Adams last Saturday with 51 points and they decided to stick to that point total again on Friday. Northeastern took down Eastern Hancock 51-35. Given the Knights' advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 23rd, while the Royals are ranked 164th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Northeastern's win came from a few key players Shenandoah will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Sam White, who went 5 of 8 on his way to 12 points along with six blocks and five boards. Those six blocks gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Noah Payne, who posted 11 points in addition to five rebounds and four steals.
Northeastern's win was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-0. As for Shenandoah, their victory bumped their record up to an identical 5-0.
Keep an eye on the arc in Friday's matchup: Shenandoah has been dynamite from deep this season, having made 37% of their three-pointers per game. It's a different story for Northeastern, though, as they've only made 28.7% of their three-pointers this season. Given Shenandoah's sizable advantage in that area, Northeastern will need to find a way to close that gap.
Shenandoah lost to Northeastern at home by a decisive 46-32 margin in their previous matchup back in March. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Northeastern's Tre Vanlandingham, who went 6 of 10 on his way to 17 points and five assists. Now that Shenandoah knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
